EX-Cyclone Oswald is sweeping down the Queensland coast, bringing rain to parched cane fields but closing dozens of roads and national parks.

Torrential rain has lashed north Queensland, with Ingham, Halifax and Tully and parts of Townsville suffering some flooding.

The Mackay to Gladstone region was copping the brunt of rain today, with Samuel Hill north of Yeppoon recording 148mm in six hours. Rockhampton had 79mm, Carmila to the north 73mm and Gladstone to the south, 58mm in the same period.

The monsoon low will start impacting on Brisbane tomorrow, with scattered showers and rain.

Weather Bureau forecaster Andrew Cameron said the southeast could rack up about 300mm in the period running up to Monday, potentially causing flash flooding and wiping out Australia Day weekend events.

"That's a cumulative total over four days and you'd have to get the full whammy to get that much," Mr Cameron said.

Showers would increase to rain on Saturday , with falls to 100mm in some parts.

This would increase further on Sunday, with falls ranging from 100mm to 150mm.

On Friday showers might drift inland as far as Goondiwindi but they would mostly be restricted to the Darling Downs and east of the Great Dividing Range.

The weather system was expected to swing offshore about Bundaberg and there was a low chance that it might re-form into a cyclone.

"It's definitely given almost the entire east coast a good progressive soaking," Mr Cameron said.

The rain has flushed out some north Queensland locals.

Police have spotted at least two crocodiles walking on roads in flood-cut Ingham as ex-Tropical Cyclone Oswald moves south producing torrential rain and a freak tornado at Mackay.

Officers photographed one two-metre crocodile on the highway at flooded Seymour River and spotted another croc south of the sugar town on a crossing at Cattle Creek.

Police warn the sightings are a reminder the flood dangers are not just from flash flooding and fast-flowing waters on closed roads.

Homes across Cairns were left without power as the north was buffeted by monster 4m seas and wild winds up to 90km/hr overnight.

Some foolhardy surfers braved stingers and a pounding on-shore swell to try to catch some waves in the freak conditions.

Ingham is completely cut-off north and south while the Bruce Highway is also cut near Proserpine as Mackay and the Whitsundays recorded heavy rainfall under the tropical monsoon system.

A freak tornado, or water spout, with up to 140km/hr winds whipped up off Hay Point, near Mackay, the weather bureau said.

Up to 5pm yesterday, the township of Scherger on Cape York received nearly 370mm in 24 hours and the record-breaking low has seen Weipa Airport collect its highest daily rainfall total in 41 years, with 327.8mm.

Tully was drenched by 600mm in 48 hours. Coastal towns and cities between Cooktown, on Cape York Peninsula, south to Mackay are on flood alert.

The Bruce Highway has been cut in several places.

The SES has fielded 75 calls for assistance with fallen trees and leaky roofs across central and north Queensland under the wild weather.

Townsville crews had 25 call-outs since yesterday with Emergency Management officials believing the focus will turn to Mackay and Rockhampton today.

In a crazy week for Queensland weather, the bureau has issued warnings ranging from cyclones, to fire danger, extreme heat, floods and dangerous winds.

Yesterday, it had 11 warnings out. These included advice for rivers in flood in southern Queensland, the border region and north Queensland.

These included the Weir, Moonie and Warrego in the south and the Tully and Herbert rivers in the north.

It had a severe weather warning out for Cape York to the Whitsundays, thanks to the remnants of ex-Cyclone Oswald and ocean and coastal wind warnings for the Gulf of Carpentaria and east coast.

Forecasters also expect a severe to extreme fire danger in a huge slab of country running from the northwest of the state to the far southwest.

The region is struggling with temperatures to 45C, humidity down to 10 per cent and winds to 50km/hr.

Places to be affected include the Century Mine in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Mount Isa, Cloncurry, Julia Creek, Richmond, Urandangie, Longreach, Winton, Boulia, Birdsville, Ballera, Windorah, Quilpie, Thargomindah and Charleville.

It prompted Queensland Fire and Rescue Service northern region rural operations manager Ken Beasley to warn residents in bone-dry western Queensland that they could not afford to be complacent as temperatures soared.

"Despite the heavy rain currently impacting parts of northern Queensland at this time, it is anticipated western areas of the state will experience high temperatures and strong winds in coming days, conditions that make it difficult to contain fires that flare up," Mr Beasley said.

"Extreme to severe fire conditions are forecast for the Mount Isa, Cloncurry and Richmond areas and surrounds, with severe fire conditions for the areas west of Century Mine, to Moranbah and Cunnamulla."

The news comes as the National Climate Centre's outlook for February to April is for as little as a 40 per cent chance of receiving above average rain for the southern and southeast-NSW border region but better odds for the north.

Meanwhile, north Queensland's big wet is being blamed for the death of a motorist, killed as wild weather lashed Proserpine.

The man died and a female passenger was in a serious condition in hospital after a truck and car collided in wet conditions at the Whitsunday Coast Airport turnoff, south of town at 10.35am.

Queensland Rail has closed the rail link between Cairns and Townsville as authorities warn of flash flooding. Residents in flood-prone Ingham have been warned to stock up on supplies with the Herbert River rising rapidly and expected to peak at 11m, with nearly 200mm of rain dumped on the town in three hours.

Almost all of the state's reef-going tourist operators have cancelled trips, for the first time since category-five Cyclone Yasi two years ago, because of thunderstorms and gale-force winds up to 90km/hr with 4m-high seas.

Cairns, Townsville and Whitsundays ports were a hive of activity as crews tied off cruise ships, dive boats and yachts yesterday.

The Bruce Highway remains cut north of Ingham and south of Tully with the road underwater in spots after huge combined fall totals of nearly 1000mm in three days with a 300m long convoy of trucks, cars and scores of stranded travellers at Cardwell.

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